Lauren Groff's 'Brawler' Gets Acclaim

- *Brawler* is Lauren Groff's first collection of short stories since her 2018 book, *Florida*, which was a finalist for the National Book Award. This new collection contains nine stories that have been in the works since as far back as 2016. - The stories in the collection span from the 1950s to the present day and are set in various locations across the United States, from New England to California. - The title "Brawler" comes from one of the stories in the collection, first published in *The New Yorker* in 2019. Groff's literary agent, Bill Clegg, suggested it as the title for the entire collection. - The book's cover art features a painting by Vladimir Dunjić titled "Sophia." Groff, a former swimmer, was immediately drawn to the image of the swimmer whose reflection is mirrored in an inky blue pool. - Groff is a highly decorated author with a history of critical success. She has been a three-time finalist for the National Book Award and has won The Story Prize, the Joyce Carol Oates Prize, and France's Grand Prix de l'Héroïne. - Her previous novel, *The Vaster Wilds* (2023), a historical novel set in the colonial wilderness, was described by *The Guardian* as "a hymn of endurance" with "biblical, incantatory" prose and was named one of Barack Obama's favorite books of 2023. - Groff and her husband own an independent bookstore, The Lynx, in Gainesville, Florida, where they live. Her work has been translated into over thirty languages. - Critics have noted Groff's declarative writing style, which can seem almost invisible and free of filigree. Her writing often explores themes of longing and loneliness, sometimes situating characters in isolated settings like islands or inaccessible cabins.